Research Catalog

Intimate enemies : moral panics in contemporary Great Britain

Title
  1. Intimate enemies : moral panics in contemporary Great Britain / Philip Jenkins.
Published by
  1. New York : Aldine de Gruyter, ©1992.
Author
  1. Jenkins, Philip, 1952-

Items in the library and off-site

Filter by

Displaying 1 item

StatusFormatAccessCall numberItem location
Status
Request for on-site useRequest scan
How do I pick up this item and when will it be ready?
FormatTextAccessUse in libraryCall numberHN400.M6 J46 1992Item locationOff-site

Details

Description
  1. xiii, 262 pages; 24 cm.
Summary
  1. Intimate Enemies describes the creation of a journalistically induced panic in Great Britain during the the 1980s - a decade of intense concern about a closely related set of perceived problems: sexual abuse of children, child pornography, satanic rituals, and serial murder. It was widely alleged that such practices became more common during the decade, and the notoriety attracted major attention from the mass media, as well as from agencies in law enforcement, social welfare, and mental health.
  2. Jenkins' book traces how such problems were reformulated in the course of the decade, and how they came to be seen as major menaces to society. It discusses the motivations of those who knowingly or otherwise disseminated misleading and exaggerated claims, and seeks to explain why these claims gained such widespread credence. Jenkins suggests that these newly defined "problems" aroused concern because they focussed upon broadly-held fears about changes in British society and national identity. In addition, the alleged threats to children provided a weapon for various political groups in their campaigns: for conservatives opposed to perceived moral "permissiveness," and also for radical feminists seeking to promote an ideological agenda of their own.
Series statement
  1. Social problems and social issues
Uniform title
  1. Social problems and social issues
Subject
  1. Crime > England > Public opinion
  2. Cults > England > Public opinion
  3. Sex customs > England > Public opinion
  4. Child abuse > England > Public opinion
  5. Public opinion > England
  6. Moral panics
  7. Child abuse > Public opinion
  8. Crime > Public opinion
  9. Cults > Public opinion
  10. Moral conditions > Public opinion
  11. Public opinion
  12. Sex customs > Public opinion
  13. Gewaltkriminalität
  14. Journalismus
  15. Meinungsbildung
  16. Mord
  17. Sexualdelikt
  18. Öffentliche Meinung
  19. Paniek
  20. Sociale problemen
  21. Massamedia
  22. Geschichte (1980-1990)
  23. England > Moral conditions > Public opinion
  24. England
  25. Großbritannien
Contents
  1. 1. Approaching Social Problems. Social Problems. Explaining Witches. The Role of Interest Groups. Moral Panics. British Panics of the 1980s. Symbolic Politics. The Interdependence of Panics. The Book. The Mass Media. The Media and Social Problems -- 2. Britain. Politics and Government. Race and National Identity. Crime and Disorder. Reconstructing the Family. Feminism. The Politics of Gender. The Conservative Reaction. Morality and Permissiveness. The Pornography Issue. Religion. The New Fundamentalists -- 3. Sex Beasts and Serial Killers. Serial Murder in Britain. The Politics of Rape. Serial Rape. Official Responses to Rape. The Yorkshire Ripper. Serial Murder as Sexual Murder. Constructing Sexual Violence. The Feminist Analysis of Serial Murder. Anne Lock and Suzy Lamplugh. The Events of 1986. The Debate over National Policing. HOLMES -- 4. Preying on Children: Pedophilia and Child Murder. Inventing the Pedophile. The Pedophile Information Exchange (PIE).
Owning institution
  1. Princeton University Library
Bibliography (note)
  1. Includes bibliographical references (p. 235-252) and index.